The Most NerveWracking Day of My Life
by Serenitychan13
Summary: What's the most nerve-wracking day of any man's life? The day they propose, of course! What else did you think? Souzou Sagara is no different. But remember Murphy's Law - what can go wrong will! And does...
1. The Day Begins

The Most Nerve-Wracking Day of My Life 

A Romantic Comedy by: Serenity-chan

POV :  
Thoughts ' '  
Speaking " " (Did I really need to say that?)

Prologue (Or "The Day Begins... Oooooh boy...")

:Souzou:

I woke at dawn and had been pacing nervously around my room since then. Sweat was trailing down my face in little rivulets and I couldn't stay still. I turned the little box over in my hand again, opened it and sighed. Yes, the ring was still there, just as it had been the last twenty or so times I checked. My palms were slick with sweat and the small black velvet box nearly slipped from my hand. I stuck it back in my pocket and swiped a hand over my forehead.

'Can I do this?' I thought, staring at the wall.

I thought about what I had planned. I had turned twenty recently and had sworn to myself that I would propose soon. Today was the day, it had to be. It was a beautiful day in April and the sakura trees were in full bloom. The garden, as far as I knew, had remained undisturbed and it was there that I planned to finally ask Midori to be my wife.

:Midori:

The sun finally filtered into my room and, for once in my almost-twenty years of life, I was good and ready for it. I had been awake for some time - I'm guessing my eyes had opened just before the light of dawn. I didn't know why I was up so early - I was well-known in the family for being a night owl - and usually I loved to sleep in. But for some reason, today I wasn't complaining - in fact, I was eager! Excitement felt like static on my skin.

Souzou had turned twenty about a week ago and had been acting funny since then - I wondered if it was because of how he had acted when his friends got him drunk. But that's another story altogether... He had been secretive and was always stumbling over his words, like he couldn't talk right. A few times, I had caught him staring at me with an odd look on his face. Once, he saw me looking and blushed bright red. He hadn't blushed since he was seventeen, so I was starting to get a little worried.

'What could he be thinking?' I thought, twirling a lock of hair around my finger. 'Ugh, guys are so hard to figure out..."

He had asked me to go somewhere with him today and of course I said yes. We were going to start early, which I usually would have protested to. Then again, to me, "early" is anytime before ten on a weekend. But this time I dragged myself off my futon and went to fish through my closet for a nice kimono. Finally I found a nice lavender one and chose a white obi to go with it. I hated tying those things, so I went to wake my sister.

'I wonder why he didn't say where we were going...' I thought vaguely.

"Setona, wake up!" I whispered, poking my fourteen-year-old sister until she opened one sleepy dark green eye and glared at me.

"What is it?" she hissed.

I rolled my eyes. Setona could be lazier than me sometimes, and that was saying something. But she was definitely better at tying an obi than I was. I poked her again, playfully trying to annoy her.

"I need you to help me with my white obi," I hissed back. "I have to leave in, like, half an hour!"

She sat up, now thoroughly awake and interested.

"Going somewhere with Souzou again?" she asked knowingly, one eyebrow raised.

I blushed in spite of myself and stared at the wall. I could practically HEAR my sister grinning at me.

"Thought so," she said brightly. "Come on, I'll help you... But you owe me..."

"Whatever," I replied.

The two of us headed for my room to tackle the insanely complicated bow.


	2. A Morning To Remember

The Most Nerve-Wracking Day Of My Life 

A Romantic Comedy by: Serenity-chan

POV :  
Thoughts ' '  
Speaking " " (Did I really need to say that?)

Chapter One (Or "A Morning To Remember")

:Souzou:

I was practically shaking when Midori appeared at the door, my hands clenched so tightly into fists that I knew my knuckles were white. She looked beautiful in her pale lavender furisode and for a long moment, I was speechless. Sweat was starting to bead on my forehead again and I hoped she didn't notice. She must have - just my luck - because she looked at me oddly for a moment before she slipped her hand into mine.

"Good morning, sweetheart," I said softly, kissing her cheek.

I heard a younger girl giggle quietly, quirked an eyebrow at Midori, and quickly glanced at the doorway. Midori's sister little sister, Setona, gave another giggle and disappeared back down the hall. Midori rolled her violet eyes and gave me an exaggeratedly-pained look, silently apologizing for her little sister. I smiled at her.

"'Morning, Souzou," she said sweetly, giving a furtive glance all around before standing up on her toes and kissing my cheek.

I shifted nervously from one foot to the other.

"Well, are you ready to go?" I asked, hoping for I all I was worth that those weren't purple clouds I saw moving in on the horizon.

"Remind me again where we're going?" she asked, looking at me with more than slight suspicion in her violet eyes.

I froze for a second.

'Damn, I didn't come up with another excuse!'

What was I supposed to do? Casting about frantically for something, the first thing I saw was the sakura tree beside Midori's bedroom window. Well, it was a lame excuse but hopefully it would work. For a while, at least...

"There are some sakura trees that just started blooming," I said, trying not to sound nervous.

Midori looked at the sky, then at me.

"What for?" she asked, looking at me as though I had said something odd. "We've seen sakura trees before and, anyway, it's going to rain!"

I was dead set that this had to work. Giving the sky a furtive glance, I saw that the clouds along the horizon were a menacing purple-black color. Determinedly ignoring it, I started off towards the sakura trees, still holding Midori's hand. I could practically feel her rolling her eyes at me as I muttered something along the lines of 'Maybe it'll blow over...'

"That's not all I've got planned today, you know," I said, smiling at her and trying to look like nothing could possibly go wrong. "For one thing, we're meeting Reichi and Sadako for lunch."

Midori smiled, her suspicions dispelled for the moment.

:Midori:

It was just past eleven-thirty and the weather had been getting worse all day. There was no blue sky visible now, as there had been this morning, just ominous black clouds. The wind had been steadily picking up speed and now it was definitely signaling a thunderstorm. My long sleeves flapped in front of my legs, making it hard to walk. Souzou started to look worried when a few raindrops were swept in on the wind, splashing into our faces. But would he ever admit that he had been wrong about the rain? Of course not!

My aunt once told me that males in general were blockheads, but I hadn't really started to believe her until now.

:Souzou:

Alright, it probably would have been a better idea to take her shopping, but there was no way I was going to admit defeat - not yet anyway. But then again this weather seemed to be out to murder both of us. It was starting to rain, too. Oh, did I say rain? I meant storm... Even that way, it's an understatement. Thunder seemed to explode in the air and lightning split the sky. Midori froze. She was terrified of thunder and lightning.

I stopped and wrapped my arms around Midori, trying to protect her from the wind and the rain. She was shaking badly, pressing herself against me. Inside my head, I was growling every swear word I knew, both at the weather (for scaring Midori) and at myself (for getting us stuck in this mess). Midori was really scared, not to mention we were in a seriously dangerous situation and every bit of it was my fault. Was everything just working against me today?

We weren't too far from the restaraunt where we were meeting Reichi and Sadako. If I could just convince Midori to move (not that I minded having her warm body pressed against mine like that), we could most likely get there without too much trouble. The temperature seemed so much colder because of the rain. It had been warm this morning, so I didn't even have a jacket to give her.

"Midori, come on," I whispered in her ear. "We have to get out of here!"

She whimpered a little, holding me a little tighter.

"I'm too scared to move," she said softly.

I thought for a second, then smiled at her. Gently, as if handling a porcelain doll, I took her in my arms. She tensed for a moment, then relaxed against my chest. Tenderly, I nuzzled against her cheek as I started for the Dakedo. I hoped Reichi and Sadako had been held up just a little. I didn't exactly want my best friend to see me like this.

"You'll be alright," I said gently.

Soon we were under the eave of the restaraunt's roof. Thunder kept crashing and Midori continued to shudder. I set her on her feet and nuzzled into the hollow of her throat. Well, the weather was horrible, so there wasn't anyone around to see... Mmm... Sandalwood... She smelled like sandalwood... I had just started to lose myself in the soothing scent, kissing the curve of her throat when...

"Souzou!" yelled a painfully familiar voice. "What the hell!"

I went dead still, my mouth still brushing Midori's neck. Well this was just my luck again. The one time when I don't want anyone to see me and my best friend and his fiancee find me all over Midori. This was just WONDERFUL... I could hear him starting to laugh and felt my face getting hot. Midori shifted uncomfortably and I lifted my mouth from her throat.

"Did we... interrupt something?" asked Reichi, obviously trying to keep his laughter from becoming uproarious.

"Yes, in fact you did," countered Midori. "And I was really enjoying that too!"

I was more than a little shocked. My sweet, innocent Midori... I never knew she had it in her... Not to mention we weren't exactly supposed to be doing that at all... Casually, I draped one arm around her shoulders, grinning at my best friend's incredulous expression. Midori blushed, obviously surprised at herself.

"Can we just go ahead and get our lunch?" asked Reichi, not looking at anyone as his face turned an interesting crimson color.

I nodded as I helped Midori squeeze the water out of the long sleeves of her kimono. She started wringing out her long braid. I motioned for Reichi and Sadako to go ahead. Midori and I needed to straighten ourselves out a little. Though Midori's sleeves were hopelessly wrinkled and I'm sure I looked like a drowned rat, we couldn't really keep our friends waiting much longer. I took Midori's hand, trying to warm her small hand with my larger one.

"Don't pay any attention to Reichi," I said, trying not to blush again. "You wouldn't believe what I accidentally walked in on them doing once..."

Midori turned bright red, squeezed my hand then let go as we went in and sat down with Reichi, still laughing, and Sadako. I was fairly uneasy about the situation now. We hadn't had anything but rotten luck since this morning and there were still a thousand things that could go wrong. If I had only known that it would be all downhill from there...

Somehow, I think I should have known that ordering beef stew would be a REALLY bad idea. Reichi happened to be very clumsy that day and I don't know how, but somehow a very hot onion went flying across the table. It landed on Midori's hand and when she tried to flick it away, her hand hit the beef stew bowl. Steaming hot beef stew splashed all over everything. Somehow Sadako was the only one of us who managed to avoid the mess.

"Reichi!" I yelled, flicking a carrot off my hand. "Gah! Could this day get any worse?"

Reichi's face turned white. For what was not exactly the first time, I felt a strong desire to strangle my best friend. Or at least belt him a good one in the jaw. Taking a deep breath to try and calm myself, I turned to Midori and helped her to her feet.

"We'll be leaving now," I said grimly. "In case you were wondering, this was a disaster."

"I figured," said Reichi, laughing nervously. "We'll see you later..."

I took Midori's hand and we both left in a hurry. Midori had a horrible brown stain over most of the front of her kimono. A little piece of onion was still clinging to her hair. Even so, she still looked adorable. I pulled the onion out of her hair and flicked it away, smiling at her. Taking a furtive glance around to make sure no one would see, I tilted her face up to mine and gave her a soft kiss. Her lips tasted of beef stew and I licked at them hungrily. Well, I had barely tasted any of my lunch, so what else could I do? She moaned into my hungry kisses, for a moment pushing my worry out of my mind.

As we slowly ended our kiss, I slipped my hand into my pocket. My fingers found the little box and I pulled it out, hiding it behind my back. Gently, I cupped Midori's chin in the palm of my hand, looking down into her beautiful violet eyes. My hand tightened around the little box and I leaned in close, almost brushing her lips with mine.

'Am I really about to ask the woman I love to stay with me forever?' I thought in wonder. 'No question...'

I was about to whisper those words, 'Will you marry me?' when she tilted her head up and pressed her mouth to mine quickly. For the first time, I felt ready to cry in frustration at a kiss. I couldn't believe she had just cut me off while I was trying to propose! And she didn't even know!

Gently, I pulled back from her lips. We both needed to clean up, considering we were both soaked and we smelled like beef stew. I agreed to meet Midori at the Dakedo before the start of the Autumn Festival - alright, so the sakura trees had been a flat-out lie... - so we could have dinner for two. She still didn't know what I had planned for after dinner. I was going to take her back to that garden where we had shared our first kiss. While we watched the fireworks from the festival, I was going to ask her to be my wife.

:Midori:

Alright, so lunch was a total fiasco. If I hadn't overreacted to the hot onion, none of that would have happened. Souzou had really looked upset and I felt like it was all my fault. He was going to take me out for a quiet dinner, I assumed to make up for the disaster. Then we would probably go to the festival.

I felt so stupid. I had ruined my kimono, my obi and our lunch. I made a complete fool of myself and it really hurt. The place on my hand where the onion hit me was almost blistering and it stung terribly. Sometimes I had to wonder why Souzou put up with me...


	3. Good Tears, Bad Tears, Happy Tears, Sad ...

The Most Nerve-Wracking Day of My Life 

A Romantic Comedy by: Serenity-chan

POV :  
Thoughts ' '  
Speaking " " (Did I really need to say that?)

Chapter Two

(Or "Good Tears, Bad Tears, Happy Tears, Sad Tears)  
(Yes, the title is a play on One Fish, Two Fish, Red Fish, Blue Fish. Ha.)

:Souzou:

About four hours later, Midori showed up at the Dakedo. The first thing I noticed about her was her red, puffy eyes. It was obvious that she had been crying and she wouldn't look me in the eyes. Tentatively, I put an arm around her waist and pulled her close to my side. A quick, gentle kiss on her temple only earned a small sniffle. I turned to face her and tilted her face up to mine. She still wouldn't make eye contact and her lower lip was trembling. I smiled at her then leaned in close, kissing her tenderly, though I could only stay for a moment.

"Come on," I said gently as I pulled back only an inch or so. "I can't help if you don't tell me what's wrong..."

Midori was silent for a moment.

"I just feel like I ruined everything," she whispered, sounding as if she was ready to cry again. "If I hadn't got so upset over a stupid burn, then nothing would have happened..."

So that was it; she felt like the whole mess at lunch was her fault... Gently I took her hand so I could take a look at her burn. It was almost blistered, red and raw. I brought her hand to my lips and placed a tender, feather-light kiss on the angry red mark. She winced a little bit, so I kissed her cheek quickly to distract her from the small pain.

"If you hadn't reacted right away, this would have been much worse," I told her, leading her into the Dakedo.

We sat in a booth in the very back of the restaraunt. It was dimly lit and the candle on the table was sandalwood scented. Most people were already at the festival so there weren't very many people there. That meant we could finally sneak a few moments to be close. The feeling of Midori's soft warmth cuddled against my side in the dark was soothing.

Carefully, I slipped my hand into my pocket and pulled out that little box again. A gentle kiss on Midori's temple got her attention. Just as I opened my mouth to ask the question, the waitress showed up with our dinner. Quickly, Midori and I moved away from each other, turning a little bit red. Frustrated again, I shoved the little box back into my pocket.

:Midori:

Our dinner was fairly quiet, with no major mishaps. That is, until we got some of the complimentary miso soup. It was steaming when the waitress brought it out, so I tentatively dipped my finger into my bowl to test the temperature. I found that it was fine and I raised my hand to my lips to get that little drop off my finger. Souzou's quick actions shocked me, especially considering our surroundings.

He took hold of my hand as I was raising it and brought it to his own mouth. Looking deeply into my eyes, he flicked his tongue over the tip of my finger, catching the little drop. My eyes widened and my cheeks turned red. He continued to hold my gaze as he dipped my finger into his own bowl and brought my hand back to his lips. I gave an almost inaudible gasp as he gently swirled his tongue over my fingertip and drew it into his mouth. My heart skipped a beat as he suckled tenderly on my finger.

When he released me, I tentatively took his hand and dipped his finger in my own soup bowl. Capturing his eyes with mine, I began to suckle on his fingertip just as he had done to me. His eyes widened for a moment, then fell half-closed in contentment. I continued to suckle long after the taste of miso was gone, feeling his sword-calloused skin against my tongue. My own eyes were almost-closed in bliss as well.

When I released Souzou's hand, he tilted my face up to his and looked down into my eyes, his gaze more intense than I had ever seen it before. His dark brown eyes seemed to burn into my own violet ones. Gently, not even checking to see if anyone might be watching, he brushed his lips against mine. A split second pause and our mouths pressed together. We stayed that way until we heard a sharp cough. Fast as lightning, we pulled apart and saw a severe-looking middle-aged woman, obviously the restaraunt's owner, glaring at us. My eyes widened.

"This part of the Dakedo is a restaraunt, not an inn," she said sharply. "If you need a room, kindly go and check into one."

Both of us turned dark red (Souzou's ears even turned pink!) and we left in a hurry. It was almost sunset and Souzou seemed to be getting nervous about something. Tentatively, biting his lip, he took hold of my hand and we slowly headed for the festival's food section. I particularly remembered one of my favorites from last year. They were these tiny fruit-flavored hard candies shaped like hearts. Souzou saw a display of them and got a pack for me.

:Souzou:

I knew Midori loved those little fruit-flavored candy hearts. I was quite fond of them myself. They seemed to make your mouth freeze for a moment. The sensation was pleasant and left your mouth feeling cool. For me, the best thing about them was that the feeling was better if you shared it with someone... I ducked behind one stall, checked to be sure the owner was occupied and held the pack up to Midori's lips.

"Care to share these with me?" I asked, my tone low and seductive.

Midori took the pack from my hand and gave me a teasingly quick little kiss.

"I'd love to..." she said softly, looking up at me through her long, smoky-black eyelashes.

I grinned suggestively at her, kissed the tip of her nose, and we left the festival. Taking her hand, I led her to a maze-like garden full of hedges and sakura trees. I led her down a path that I had memorized to the secluded corner that hid a pond and a small stone bench. Surely there would be no one to bother us here. Midori's expression became one of wonder as I guided her to duck under one last barrier and gestured around at our location.

"Souzou... This is" she started, her voice barely above a whisper.

"Where we had our first kiss," I finished for her, giving her a quick hug.

I directed her attention back to the candy hearts for a moment.

"Now, I thought we were going to share these," I said in a low voice, winking naughtily at her.

Midori reached up to wrap her arms around my neck, kissing tenderly along my jawline. I poured three little candy hearts into my free hand and placed them on my tongue. A shiver ran down my back as I felt that wonderful freezing sensation. Leaning in close with my mouth slightly open, I kissed her - slow, soft and sweet. As my tongue tenderly parted her lips, the three tiny hearts slipped into her mouth. She moaned softly as she too felt the tingling sensation on her tongue.

Gently, I pulled back from her lips as I heard the first of the fireworks. Sparks the same colors as the candy hearts Midori and I were sharing burst among the stars. The night sky glowed in all the different colors. As more fireworks began going off, I realized that my opportune moment was here at last. There was no way I was going to let it go this time. I sat by Midori on that small stone bench and turned to face her, taking her hands in mine.

"Midori, I have something to say to you," I began slowly. "Will you listen?"

Midori nodded, then tilted her head curiously at me.

"All day, things have just gone from bad to worse," I said somewhat sadly. "Starting with the storm this morning, then Reichi and Sadako found us all over each other. The high point of the day was the disaster at lunch, followed by being told to get a room by the owner of the Dakedo. On top of all that, I've been trying to ask you something all day and I keep getting interrupted!"

Midori's deep violet eyes widened.

"What is it?" she asked in a voice so soft I could barely hear it.

I took a deep breath and stood up, looking at the ground.

"Alright, before anything else happens..." I sighed, then paused.

I slipped my hand into my pocket and took a firm hold on the little box as I pulled it out and hid it behind my back. Midori gave a soft, involuntary gasp as I bent down on one knee. Looking up at her, I saw tears in her eyes.

"Midori," I said softly, bringing the little box out from behind my back and slowly opening it. "Will you marry me?"

A single tear trailed down Midori's cheek and she gave me a sweet smile that looked like it should have belonged to an angel.

"Y-y-yes," she stammered almost inaudibly. "Yes, Souzou. Yes!"

Her hand was shaking as she reached out for her ring. I smiled, though I had tears of joy in my own eyes. My own hand was shaking as I slid the diamond ring onto the third finger of her left hand. With that, she let herself fall forward into my arms, burying her face in my shoulder. I could feel happy tears soaking into my shirt as she held me tight. A tear escaped from my own eye as I tenderly rubbed her back, trying to ease her rushing emotions.

Slowly, I stood up, taking her with me. Her tears were subsiding but her hold on me was just as tight, as if she had no intention of letting me go. Gently, I pulled back and tilted her face up to mine to kiss her tears away. Light, quick kisses erased the tiny drops from her skin. Smiling at her, I nuzzled the tip of her nose with mine, then kissed it.

"When?" I asked, leaning my forehead against hers.

"When what?" she whispered back, sounding slightly dazed.

I gave her lower lip an affectionate nibble.

"Our wedding, of course," I murmured against her lips.

Midori sighed quietly, tenderly stroking the back of my neck with her fingertips and making me shiver pleasantly.

"I've always dreamed of a spring wedding," she said softly, sounding dream-like and faraway.

"How does the first week of May sound?" I asked, playing with the end of her braid, twirling the end around my fingertip. "Everything will be blooming... What do you say to an outdoor wedding?"

I sat back on the small stone bench and pulled my wife-to-be into my lap, holding her tight. She snuggled happily against my chest, closing her eyes and sighing in contentment. The smile on her face could only be described as radiant. I knew she was already dreaming of the day.

"That sounds absolutely perfect..." she sighed.

I realized that what my father had told me when I told him that I intended to propose to Midori was absolutely true.

"You know what, Midori?" I asked, my words muffled because I was nuzzling against the smooth skin of her throat.

"Hm?" she replied, cupping her hand around the back of my head and holding me where I was.

I pressed a kiss to the pulse point at her throat, eliciting a small moan and making her twitch.

"This was the most nerve-wracking day of my life," I said, smiling fondly. "And I loved every minute of it..."


End file.
